“The arrival of county lines has resulted in rampant drug dealing in the street, flats taken over by gangs and communities witnessing a machete attack and drug injections in the street,” Mr Furse said.

“Many residents are in fear of leaving their flat or having their children play on the local green.”

Mr Furse said police officers and PCSOs were having to do more paperwork as a result of cuts to administrative staff, and that they were often needed in Bristol.

In a letter to the editors of Bath Chronicle and Somerset Live, he wrote: “Central police funding has cut back-office staff with the intention of keeping front line staff, but this is a false economy since beat officers and PCSOs are now having to spend additional time processing crime and thus are not visible on the streets as residents expect.

“Correspondents to your paper and the MP may be calling for a police station, but what we need is a clear understanding of the police resources to tackle this level of organised crime in Bath and make our communities safe.

“Local police need the support, management and resources to tackle this organised crime, they need to work closely with social landlords, and they need to sort this out fast.”

What is a "county line"?

A county line is a criminal network used by gangs from big cities to sell hard drugs in rural towns.

A spokesman for Avon and Somerset Constabulary explained the process in a recent BBC documentary entitled "Drugsland - County Lines".

They said: “A county line is a way that a gang from a major city can run a drugs line in a small town, hundreds of miles away, and earn a lot of money.

“The county line is the phone number that you actually call to buy the drugs.

“When you make that phone call, the call actually goes to a call centre in a different city, just like ordering a Dominoes pizza.

“They would then ring up a local rep, who would deliver the drugs to you, so there’s no phone communication between the buyer and the person delivering the drugs.”

Mr Furse said he had raised concerns with the local police inspector after talking with police officers, members of the business community, residents and community groups and “a major social landlord”.

He said he has also met with Sue Mountstevens, the Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner.

Bath has 10 neighbourhood police officers and 10 PCSOs, plus a confidential number of officers who respond to 999 calls, a police spokeswoman said.

Avon and Somerset PCC Sue Mountstevens said police will recruit up to 300 more staff this year

Ms Mountstevens announced earlier this month that Avon and Somerset Police would recruit “up to 300 extra people” this year funded by a £1 increase to the council tax police precept.

The vast majority will be frontline officers, she told BBC Radio Bristol on September 18.

But a spokeswoman for the constabulary, which is responsible for actual recruitment said, it was not possible to say whether Bath would be getting any extra police officers.

The spokeswoman explained that some of those recruited would be filling vacancies left when officers retired, for example.

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Police station in Bath

Ms Mountstevens told BBC Radio Bristol: “I'd just like to say that this isn't the end of austerity.

"We've found nearly £18 million of savings in the last few years; we've still got to find another £16 million in the next three or four years, so there's still going to be cuts and changes.”

She was clear there would be no cuts to neighbourhood policing, however.

"Those numbers are absolutely sacrosanct and we will keep those for the next two years,” she said. "But money coming from local people we'll put into frontline officers."

Bath's police enquiry desk is at the One Stop Shop on Manvers Street (Image: Paul Gillis)

She added: "We're never going to get back to the numbers unless there's a great big dollop of money from central government.

"But council tax money from local residents, that equates to about 38 per cent of the total budget. It's a large amount.”

Ms Mountstevens hinted that it will take a further increase in council tax police precepts to bring more officers to Avon and Somerset.

"Yes, I suspect it will be whether local people agree again and I'm out for consultation on that at the moment," she said.

Developing Health and Independence (DHI) run free and confidential services for young people and adults who want help with a drug or alcohol problem in Bath and North East Somerset. You can contact them on 01225 329411 or info@dhibath.org.uk

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